Abuja (AFP) - Nigeria on Monday said it had retaken Gamboru and four
other towns held by Boko Haram following a joint weekend offensive by
its military, civilian vigilantes and forces from Chad and Cameroon.
"Our troops are in control after
operations which had the active support of volunteers (vigilantes) and
our friendly neighbours," national security spokesman Mike Omeri told
AFP.
In a separate
statement, he listed the towns in northeast Borno state retaken over the
weekend as Mafa, Mallam Fatori, Abadam, Marte and Gamboru, where Chad
has carried out three days of airstrikes.
An
AFP journalist in Fotokol, a Cameroonian town less than one kilometre
(mile) from Gamboru, said the aerial bombardment of the area was ongoing
earlier Monday but the situation appeared quiet by the evening.
Boko
Haram had for many months been in control of a series of towns along
Nigeria's northeastern border and staged a string of cross-border
attacks, especially inside Cameroon.
There had been growing calls
for the affected countries to mount a joint offensive amid evidence
that Boko Haram was rapidly growing in strength.
The new
multi-lateral offensive may succeed in further weakening Boko Haram but
there could also be political consequences for Nigerian President
Goodluck Jonathan, who faces a tough re-election test in less than two
weeks.
Nigeria's willingness to allow foreign militaries to bomb
its own territory and possibly occupy areas with ground forces has been
seen as an embarrassment by some in Africa's most populous and top
economy.
Omeri's statement also said 11 towns in Adamawa state to
the south of Borno had been liberated, while six areas were still being
occupied by the Islamists.
Boko Haram has also been chased out of Gujba and Gulani in northeast Yobe state, he added.
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